PEORIA — The former Aldi grocery store in South Peoria might have new life.

The building at 210 S. Western Ave. is being purchased by an Oak Brook-based commercial real estate firm, according to city officials. Paragon Real Estate intends to make the building available for lease.

The sale does not yet appear final, according to Ross Black, the city’s community development director.

“The city has been notified that there is a sales contract pending on the old Aldi’s building on Western Avenue,” Black stated in an email Wednesday night. “The city looks forward to working with the new owner on the reuse of the building.”

No new tenant appears imminent. But according to another email the Journal Star obtained that identified the potential buyer, city officials expressed a need for a grocery to replace Aldi, which closed Jan. 23.

“It’s encouraging,” 1st District City Councilwoman Denise Moore said about the sale. “But until someone opens the door and says, ‘Yes, we’re here,’ I don’t want the community to get overly excited. We’re not there, yet.”

Aldi was the only full-service grocery in that section of the city. That Aldi location and another in East Peoria closed the same day. The following day, a new Aldi store opened in the East Peoria Levee District.

A committee of 20 people formed about three weeks ago to help find a new tenant for the Western Avenue location, said Moore, who represents the area. With help from Bradley University, the group winnowed a list of 12 to 15 potential replacements to two or three.

Moore said she couldn’t remember which grocery chains made the cut, but they specialize in stores located in low-income areas.

That a real estate company showed interest in the Aldi property so soon after it was vacated didn’t necessarily surprise Moore.

“I always thought there was hope,” she said. “It confirmed what I always thought. Given the right type of attention, it could really come back and be a wonderful thing.”

Still, even if everything went perfectly, it would be difficult for another grocery to open in that spot this year, Moore said.

Nick Vlahos can be reached at 686-3285 or nvlahos@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @VlahosNick.